4–5 January:
Te Kooti and his followers manage to escape the siege of Ngā Tapa pā.[1][2]
13 February: A war party of
Ngāti Maniapoto led by
Wetere Te Rerenga kills all three men, a woman and three children, and also the
Wesleyan missionary
John Whiteley who arrives shortly afterwards, at the isolated
Pukearuhe Redoubt. This is the final act of the Taranaki wars.[3]
11 April: Prince Alfred the Duke of Edinburgh visits New Zealand on HMS Galatea.
August: The first bicycle built in Auckland is ridden for the first time. Bicycles are also built and ridden in Christchurch and Dunedin in this year.[4]
The
University of Otago is established, being New Zealand's first University.
Undated
The New Zealand Ensign is introduced for use on government ships. It does not become the official national flag until
1902. The flag of the United Tribes of New Zealand is also in common use.
Resignation and departure from New Zealand of
Jean Baptiste Pompallier, First Catholic Bishop in New Zealand.